The present invention relates generally to a fitting for a containment chamber and, more particularly, to a double booted flexible entry boot for providing a fluid-tight fitting between a wall of a fluid containment region and a conduit passing through the wall.
For many years in the area of fluid fittings, some structures have been of a permanent variety which include welding or bonding of the exterior wall of the conduit to the wall opening of the fluid containment region through which the conduit extends. Other structures, such as that disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,775,073, disclose the use of a fitting system which is installed at a factory and then adapted by the user to fit his needs. Such manufacturing processes of fluid containment structures are limited since they require built-in fitting systems for which some users may not have any need, use and/or desire.
Moreover, many of these fitting structures require fixedly attaching the conduit at an angle perpendicular to the containment region wall. For example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,129,684; 4,775,073; 4,492,392; and 2,310,877 teach conduit fitting systems which require the conduit to be placed at an angle normal to the containment wall. If the angle is not normal, the fluid-tight seal will be breached. Such requirements greatly inhibit the use of the fitting system since a conduit cannot be inserted into the containment wall at angles which are other than normal while still maintaining a fluid-tight environment.
Thus, it is an object of the present invention to provide a fluid-tight entry boot for use with fluid-tight fitting systems, which boot has the advantage of easy installation for a user. It is a further object of the present invention to provide such an entry boot which has at least one sealing member substantially fully disposed within the containment region, which advantageously protects the sealing member from ground and weather exposure. It is yet a further object of the present invention to provide a flexible entry boot which may be repaired and/or replaced without water and/or fluid pouring into the containment region. Yet still further, it is an object of the present invention to provide such an entry boot which allows for the insertion of a conduit into a containment wall opening at angles which are not necessarily normal while maintaining a fluid-tight environment. Still further, it is an object of the present invention to provide such a fluid-tight system which is of simple construction and relatively easy and inexpensive to manufacture.